CN1066011C - Methods and equipment for incubating eggs - Google Patents

Abstract

The egg-holding tray holds the eggs such that the longitudinal axis of the eggs forms an angle of about 35 ° with respect to the horizontal bottom surface of the tray and the air cell ends of the eggs are raised. Vents on the tray side walls allow fresh air to flow from directly above the eggs during incubation. The hatchery includes a rack that supports a plurality of trays containing eggs. The tray-loaded rack is moved into the incubation chamber through a first set of doors connecting the incubation chamber to a first aisle filled with fresh air. After incubation, the rack and air conditioning system in each incubation chamber are moved through a second set of doors into a second aisle filled with exhaust air from the incubation chamber. The pressure in the first aisle is higher than the pressure in the second aisle to reduce the risk of contamination.

Description

Methods and equipment for incubating eggs

The present invention relates to methods and apparatus for incubating eggs, and more particularly to such a method and apparatus wherein trays holding eggs are contained in a controlled environment to promote hatching of the eggs.

For many years, trays have been used to hold eggs in the hatching process. Generally speaking, fresh eggs are placed on the tray first, and then multiple trays with eggs are placed on a rack. The racks are set up in a hatching room where the environment, especially temperature and humidity, is controlled to allow as many chicks as possible to emerge from the eggs. In most (but not all) cases, the first tray is designed to have ideal incubation conditions, and the eggs in the first tray are transferred to the second tray just before the chicks are hatched. The second tray is designed to meet the needs of chicks after hatching. Existing methods include placing eggs on a substantially flat surface in a tray.

During incubation, the tray is tilted relative to the horizontal axis to simulate the movement of the mother bird's beak and feet in the nest to create eggs. This movement during incubation is important because during the first 14 days of incubation, the young embryos are floating and if the egg is not turned, the young embryos will stick to the top surface of the egg and die. After approximately 14 days of incubation, the young embryos are oriented so that their heads are on the upwardly sloping end of the egg, which should be the large end (butt end) containing the air sac.

During chick hatching (this begins around day 21 of hatching), the chick pecks open the shell with its beak. The chick pecks open along a ring near the end of the air sac that essentially Coaxial with the longitudinal axis of the egg. As a result, the air sac end of the egg is pecked off, and the chick emerges from the egg.

If the small end of the egg is tilted up when the chick orients itself, the chick will misplace its head in the small end of the egg. This way, when the chick has just pecked at the shell and started to breathe, it will drown. Even with the chick's head at the air sac end of the egg, the chick will not be able to peck if there is another object (such as the bottom of the tray or an adjacent egg) blocking the part of the shell that the chick is trying to peck The eggshell, therefore, also dies.

Sometimes the tilting of the tray (which is necessary during incubation) can cause the eggs to roll against each other or the egg to hit the tray, which also prevents chicks from hatching as described above. The small end of the egg may rest on an adjacent egg or part of the tray, thereby tilting the longitudinal axis of the egg, causing the air cell end of the egg to rest on the bottom of the tray. This problem can occur if the small end of the egg is higher than the air sac end.

Therefore, there is the shortcoming that hatching rate of young chick is low, poor quality exists in the tray of prior art and hatching method.

In addition to the above problems, contamination of the hatchery is also a reason for low chick production. A typical hatchery usually has multiple hatching rooms, each of which is equipped with mobile racks for incubation, on which trays of eggs are placed.

In some methods, the hatch houses contain eggs at various stages of incubation. The racks supporting the trays are moved successively through the hatching chamber, with fresh eggs being housed on the rack at one end of the hatching chamber and eggs ready to be hatched on the rack at the other end. In this method, the door to the hatchery is opened and closed multiple times during incubation, which encourages the spread of contamination from chick fluff and faeces from other parts of the hatchery into the hatchery.

In other hatching methods, the racks in the hatcher are filled with fresh eggs at the start of incubation so that the doors to the hatcher do not need to be opened during incubation, unless the facility requires Eggs were previously transferred from hatching trays to hatching trays. However, when the racks with fresh eggs are initially placed in the hatchery, chick fluff and faecal contamination can also enter the chamber.

In one aspect, the invention includes an egg hatching tray, the bottom of which is formed with a plurality of curved surfaces for retaining the eggs so that the longitudinal axis of the egg forms an acute angle with respect to the bottom of the tray, and the air cell end of the egg is wider than it otherwise is. One end away from the bottom of the tray.

In another aspect of the present invention, a hatchery is provided, which has a first aeration zone (or positive pressure zone, the same below) filled with fresh air. One hatcher receives egg-laden racks from the first aeration zone. During incubation, fresh air from the first plenum is circulated to the hatching chamber. After hatching, the frame can be moved from the hatching chamber into a second aeration zone. During incubation, the air in the hatcher chamber is exhausted into the second aeration zone.

The general purpose of the present invention is to provide a method and equipment for hatching eggs that can overcome the above-mentioned defects in the prior egg hatching methods and equipment.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved tray in which the egg can complete the process from hatching to cracking at one time.

A more specific object of the present invention is to provide a tray which improves the yield and quality of chicks.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide such a method and apparatus which reduces contamination of the eggs during incubation, thereby increasing the yield and quality of chicks.

Through the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, it will be easier to understand the above objects, features and advantages of the present invention.

Fig. 1 is the top plan view of the hatching tray with structure of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 2-2 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a partially enlarged plan view of the pallet in Fig. 1 when it is nested together with another identical pallet;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 in Fig. 3;

Figure 5 is a partial bottom plan view of the upper tray in Figure 3;

Figure 6 is a partial schematic plan view of a hatchery constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 7 is a partially enlarged view of the hatchery in Fig. 6 .

Referring now to Figures 1 and 2, a tray for incubating eggs is indicated generally at 10. The tray 10 is constructed in accordance with the present invention and has a bottom 12 and side walls 14,16,18,20.

The bottom 12 has a horizontal egg-cracking surface 22 . The egg holder surface is limited by side walls 14-20 and has 5 rows and 12 columns of egg nests (or pits), as indicated by reference numerals 24,26. Egg nests may also be referred to herein as retainers or curved surfaces. It is clear from Fig. 4 that the shapes of the surfaces 24, 26 are not symmetrical, but are shaped to accommodate an egg, such as the egg 28 (shown by the dotted line), and make the thin end (little end) of the egg relatively The surface 22 slopes downwards while its butt or bladder end slopes upwards as shown in FIG. 3 .

As shown in Figures 2, 4 and 5, the underside of the base 12 has reinforcing webs 30,32. The underside of each web is substantially in the same plane as the undersides of all other webs on the bottom 12 . This configuration provides a flat lower surface for the tray 10 when placed on a flat surface.

Each side wall has a downwardly facing outer shoulder, such as shoulders 34 and 36 on side walls 18 and 20, respectively. As shown in FIG. 2, the shoulders are configured to engage rods 38, 40 on a conventional support (not shown) for supporting a plurality of pallets 10. As shown in FIG.

Each side wall also has an upwardly directed inner shoulder, such as inner shoulders 42, 43, 44 on side walls 18, 14, 20, respectively. Vertical support webs, such as 46, 48, 50, extend from the lower end surface 22 of each web to place its upper end in the plane of an upward shoulder, such as 42,43. Thus, the upper end of each web such as 46, 48 has a junction with an upward shoulder such as 42, 43 respectively.

Associated with each support web is a guide means or guide web, for example guide webs 52, 54 are associated with support webs 46, 48, respectively. Each guide web has an upper surface, such as upper surface 56 on web 52, which extends from the upper position where the guide web adjoins the side wall to the lower position of the inner case (the guide web is formed at on the side wall). As will be clearly described below, when the bottom of a tray 10 is nested on top of another tray 10, the guide webs are used to align the upper and lower trays so that the lower surface of the side walls of the upper tray is guided into the lower tray The upper surface of the support web, this situation is shown in Figure 4.

A plurality of vents, such as vents 58, 60, are provided in each side wall and extend upwardly from shoulder 43, as shown. Each side wall has a pair of such vents which are aligned with the egg nests and egg nests 24, 26 in each row and column. It can be seen that the air can freely circulate along the first direction between the side walls 14, 16 and the direction perpendicular to the above-mentioned direction between the side walls 18, 20 directly above the eggs packed into the nest.

Referring now to Figures 6 and 7, a description will be given of the structure and operation of the hatchery shown generally at 62 in Figure 6 in which trays 10 are used to hold eggs during incubation. This hatchery is defined by an outer wall 64 . An unloading table 66 is used to facilitate the unloading of the eggs from the cart, preferably loaded on pallets 10 and stacked as shown in FIG. 4 . A chick loading bay 68 allows the chicks from the hatchery 64 to be loaded onto vehicles for transport to the feedlot.

The hatchery has aisles 70, 72, 74, 76 which form a first aeration zone. Aisles 70-76 are provided with fresh air flow by a conventional air conditioning system (not shown). The corridors are sealed from the outside world by conventional airtight arrangements (not shown) carried by the hatchery 64 . Along the aisles 72, 74, 76 are provided a number of hatch rooms, three of which are indicated by reference numerals 78, 80, 82. FIG. 7 schematically shows a detail of chamber 80 and a portion of chambers 78 and 82 on an enlarged scale.

Each hatching chamber, such as 80, is substantially in accordance with U.S. Co-Pending Patent Application No. 07/324,943 (filed March 16, 1989, titled Method and Apparatus for Incubating Eggs, hereinafter referred to as the '943 application) Constructed, this patent application is hereby incorporated by reference. In general, the egg hatching chamber 80 includes a pair of egg tray supports 84, 86, as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 7, the supports have a conventional structure. The stands 84 , 86 are mounted on wheels (not shown) so as to be movable to different locations in the hatchery 64 . Each rack 84 , 86 supports a plurality of trays 10 via a support rod thereon, such as support rods 38 , 40 shown in FIG. 2 .

The hatchery 80 also has an air conditioning system 88 as in the '943 application. A hose 90 is attached to one end of the air conditioning system and the other end of the hose is releasably connected to a wall 92 which forms the side wall of the passageway 74 . A vent (not shown) is provided in wall 92 to allow air in passageway 74 to communicate with air conditioning system 88 via hose 90 .

Hot and cold water supply pipes (not shown) and hot and cold water return pipes are also connected to the air conditioning system to regulate the temperature of the hatch chamber 80 as in the '943 application. The water hoses are releasably connected to the water supply and to the return lines in each setter room, as described in more detail below. For simplicity, the water pipes are not shown in the figure.

A fan mounted on the air conditioning system 88 circulates air in the hatchery 80 as shown in the '943 application.

An exhaust pipe 94 is formed on a wall 96 constituting one side wall of the passageway 98 (see FIG. 6). Aisle 98 and aisles 100, 102, 104 form a second plenum zone.

Exhaust duct 94 is constructed and operated as in the '943 application, but here mounted on the roof of the hatch.

The hatchery 80 also includes a first set of doors 106 and a second set of doors 108 . The doors 106, 108 serve as sealable openings. As will be explained below, door 106 allows racks 84, 86 and air conditioning system 88 to enter hatch 80 from passage 74, and door 108 allows racks and air conditioning to enter hall 98 from the hatch.

Referring again to FIG. 6 , a conventional heat exchanger 110 is connected to piping 112 (shown only schematically) for directing cold water supply lines to each hatch, such as hatch 80 . Likewise, the cold water return from each hatcher returns to heat exchanger 110 where heat is released and this heat is released into the hatchery 64, thereby regulating the temperature of the hatcher (as in the '943 application described), and heat the rest of the hatchery 64.

The hatchery 64 also includes a wash room 114 which is connected to the tunnel 104 by a door 116 . A cleaning room 118 is connected to the scrubbing room 114 via a door 120 and leads to the corridor 76 through a door 122 . A chick room 124 is used to receive hatched chicks prior to sending the chicks to the loading station 68 . Other rooms of the hatchery 64 are used to provide operating workshops, place mechanical equipment and office space.

The tray 10 used in the hatchery 64 will now be described. Initially, fresh fertilized eggs are placed in a plurality of stacked trays 10 (as shown in Figure 4). As can be seen from FIG. 4, the longitudinal axis of each egg, such as egg 28, is at an angle of approximately 35° relative to surface 22, and the large end of egg 28, the air cell end, is angled upward. The above-mentioned angle is preferably about 35°. However, an angle of 20° is also sufficient to obtain the advantageous effects of the invention.

Once a number of pallets are stacked, they are sent to the unloading station 66 from where they are unloaded and sent to the hatchery 64. At the unloading dock, the pallets are loaded onto supports such as 84,86. When the trays are placed on support rods, such as 38, 40 (see Figure 2, the support rods are used to support the trays in the racks), each rack is separated from the rack below by a distance sufficient to allow the chicks to stand upright on the surface 22 on. In this way, a gap is formed between the uppermost part of one tray and the lowermost part of the tray above it, allowing fresh air to circulate immediately above and around the heads of chicks standing on the surface 22. Vents 58, 60 allow air to flow directly over the egg before it hatches and breaks the shell.

After the racks are thus loaded, they are moved substantially along the dotted lines in Figure 6 into the hatching chamber 80 through the opened door 106, which is then closed.

Thereafter, a 21 day incubation process begins during which the air conditioning system 88 regulates temperature and humidity (as described in the '943 application). During incubation, the tray must be tilted to prevent the embryos in each egg from sticking to the top surface of the egg. To this end, the brackets 84, 86 carry conventional tray tilting mechanisms. The angle of inclination should be sufficient to prevent the embryos from sticking, but not so large that the eggs will roll out of the nest such as 24. After the tray has been tilted, the position of each egg remains exactly the same and remains separated from each other.

After hatching, the environmental conditions of the hatchery 80 are adjusted as described in the '943 application, and the trays are tilted using supports to facilitate hatching of the chicks. The way in which chicks break through the shell can be represented by breaking the shell of egg 28 in FIG. 4 . It can be seen that the chicks essentially emerge from the shell through a circular area generally coaxial with the longitudinal axis of the egg.

During incubation, fresh air is introduced into the hatch chamber 80 from the duct 76 via the hose 90 . The air is humidified, heated or cooled by an air conditioning system 88 as described in the '943 application. Also as described in the '943 application, air is exhausted from the hatch chamber 80 through exhaust duct 94.

It should be noted that the air pressure in the passage 76 and other areas forming the first plenum remains higher than the pressure in the passage 102 and associated areas forming the second plenum. If openings are present in the two plenums, the airflow flows from the first or fresh air plenum to the second or exhaust air plenum. This feature is important because air enters the passageway 102 through the exhaust port 94 . In addition, after hatching, the chicks are sent into the aisle 102 through the door 108 . As such, the aisle 102 and associated area forming the second aerated zone can become contaminated with chick fluff, droppings and bacteria that develop in the trays during incubation. If there are openings in the first or fresh-air filling zone and the second filling zone, air always flows from the first filling zone into the second filling zone, whereby contamination of the fresh air is prevented.

The young chick is sent into the young chick room 124 from the hatching room 80, and the young chick will be temporarily stored here until it is loaded into a vehicle through the loading platform 68 and transported out of the hatchery. The dotted lines extending from unloading dock 66 to loading dock 68 represent the route of eggs and chicks hatched from hatching chamber 80 through the hatchery.

After the chick is sent out of the hatching room 80, the water pipe (not shown) and the hose 90 are unloaded from the air conditioning system 88, and then the air conditioning system 88 is sent out of the hatching room 80 through the door 108 and into the washing room 114, to rinse thoroughly. Thereafter, the cleaning device is delivered to the cleaning room 118 through the door 120, and when required, the cleaning device can enter a hatching room such as 80.

Simultaneously, after the tray support and the air conditioning system are sent away from the hatching room 80, the cleaning device is brought into the aisle 98, and it is allowed to enter the hatching room through the door 108, and the hatching room is thoroughly cleaned and wiped. During this time, the door 106 remains closed, thereby isolating the hatch chamber from the fresh air plenum. After washing, door 108 is closed and door 106 is opened to receive the clean air conditioning unit and two more trays.

It should be noted that the doors 106 and 108 remain closed throughout the incubation process, thereby reducing the risk of contamination of the hatching chamber. As eggs do not need to be transferred from setter trays to hatcher trays, the risk of contamination is reduced, as is the risk of egg breakage caused by redundant handling. Because all eggs all start hatching at the same time, it is not necessary to open and close doors for taking out young chicks that have broken out of certain eggs and adding new eggs, as in some prior devices.

The risk of contamination is further minimized as the hatchery and air conditioning system are thoroughly cleaned after each incubation cycle. Additionally, all surfaces of the second plenum zone, ie, aisles 98-104, can be thoroughly scrubbed several times a day, if desired, to further reduce the possibility of contamination. As there is no ducting for fresh air to and exhaust from each hatch, cleaning is easier than it would be if there were ducts which would collect dust, bacteria etc which would increase the potential for contamination.

Therefore, adopting tray and hatchery of the present invention can improve hatching quantity and quality of young chicks.

Having shown and described the principles of the invention in connection with a preferred embodiment, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that modifications may be made in structure and detail without departing from this principle. But undoubtedly, these all fall within the desired protection scope of the present application.

Claims (16)

1. A method for incubating eggs, comprising the steps of: placing multiple eggs on a horizontal support surface with multiple curved surfaces; each egg is positioned such that the longitudinal axis of the egg forms an acute angle with respect to the egg support surface and that the air cell end of the egg is higher than its other end; immobilizing each egg in one of said curved surfaces relative to the egg support surface; The eggs are incubated until they hatch. 2. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of positioning each egg includes positioning each egg such that the longitudinal axis of the egg is at an angle of at least 20° relative to the egg support surface. 3. 2. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of positioning each egg includes positioning each egg such that the longitudinal axis of the egg is at an angle of approximately 35° relative to the egg support surface. 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of preventing the eggs from contacting each other. 5. 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of tilting the egg support surface during incubation. 6. A kind of hatching equipment, it comprises: support means for supporting a plurality of eggs on a substantially flat support surface; Its characteristics include: A support well for retaining each egg provided on said substantially flat support surface which holds the egg such that the longitudinal axis of the egg forms an acute angle with respect to the support surface of the egg and such that the air cell end of the egg is less than the Its other end is remote from the egg support surface. 7. 6. Apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said support pocket includes means for angling the longitudinal axis of the egg at an angle of at least 20 DEG relative to the egg support surface. 8. 7. Apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said support pocket includes means for angling the longitudinal axis of the egg at approximately 35° relative to the egg support surface. 9. 6. The apparatus of claim 6, further comprising means for preventing the eggs from contacting each other. 10. 6. Apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising means for tilting the egg support surface. 11. A tray for holding eggs during incubation comprising: a bottom with a surface to support the egg; Its characteristics include: a plurality of curved surfaces formed on said bottom, each curved surface shaped to hold the egg such that the longitudinal axis of the egg forms an acute angle with respect to said bottom surface and with the air cell end of the egg farther from the bottom than its other end surface. 12. 11. A pallet according to claim 11, including a side wall with an upwardly facing inner shoulder for supporting the bottom of another pallet nested together. 13. 12. The tray of claim 12 wherein said side walls have ventilation holes above the shoulders to allow air to circulate directly over the eggs held by said curved surface. 14. 12. The tray of claim 12 wherein said shoulders are constructed and arranged to space the top surface of an egg placed in the first tray a distance from the surface of the bottom of a second tray nested within the first tray. 15. 14. The pallet of claim 14, further comprising guide means for guiding the first pallet into nested relationship with the second pallet when said first pallet is lowered onto the second pallet. 16. 11. A pallet according to claim 11, including a side wall having a downwardly facing outer shoulder for contacting a support in a pallet support.

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